by Virlyce
***
“Why do we have to learn history? Just give me a mace and I’ll bash those humans’ heads in,” Gabriel said to Lamach. The two were sitting next to each other in a classroom with ten other demon children. At the head of the classroom, a three-horned demon was in front of a blackboard, reading aloud from a book. “I bet Tafel doesn’t have to learn this.”
“Gabriel! You may be a prince, but my word is law in this room. Do you understand me?” the teacher asked and glared at the two princes.
Gabriel looked down at his desk and mumbled, “Yes, ma’am.”
“And you Lamach. I expected better from you. Do you two want to know why history is so important? How did the humans establish a foothold in our territory one hundred years ago? How did we take Flusia back from the humans? Who was the commanding general? Do you know?” the teacher asked and slammed the book down against a table. The children remained silent as their mentor’s gaze passed over them. She exhaled and picked up the book, opening it back to the previous page. “Thousands of people have made mistakes so you don’t have to. Knowledge is power. Never forget that.”
Gabriel’s cheeks burned. “I understand.”
The teacher nodded. “Eight hundred years ago, demons and humans arrived on the north end of this continent we call Zuer. At first they worked together to clear the elves and their beasts to establish footholds suitable for growth, but then the demons found a mana source to the west in our now capital, Niffle, which greatly improved our capabilities as mages. The humans’ greed overwhelmed them, and they declared war on us to take it. We forced them back to the east and were about to wipe them all out, but the elves couldn’t let that chance go and tried to eliminate us along with the humans. In the end, we were forced to retreat to the capital and the humans survived. The majority of both the demon and human forces were expended to stop the dragon patriarch at the time, forcing the elves to retreat.”
“But how did the humans survive the attack if they were so weak?” Lamach asked.
“They had the pope who commanded the power of their god. Even if he couldn’t use offensive magic, his barrier was strong enough to keep the demons out of their final city as the elves and beasts waged war against us,” the teacher said.
“So they’re cowards hiding in their shells,” a voice called out.
“Sometimes, retreat is necessary. They’re still alive after all,” the teacher said. “I hope you future leaders never forget that. Do you see why history is so important now? We can learn from our mistakes, so next time, we won’t lose.”
***
Tafel sighed and took in a deep breath. Using magic is so difficult. She cupped her hands and an orange flame flickered into existence above her palms for two seconds before fading away.
“That’s not bad.”
Tafel raised her head. A six-horned demon, Dustin, stood over her. The horns were red and they grew out of his temples, three for each. A golden medallion hung from his neck over his black robe. Tafel pouted and said, “It’s so weak though. I heard you could defeat a whole army with one spell.”
Dustin laughed. “You can’t believe everything you hear, you know? And don’t forget, you’re only five. You should feel proud. I bet there isn’t anyone your age who can match you in magic: demon, human, or elf,” he said and smiled. “But if you really want to be the best, you could ask your father to obtain a beast to imprint you to increase your mana and skill pool. Or you can eat a fruit of knowledge, although that may require hiring S-ranked adventurers.”
Tafel’s eyes lit up when she heard the word adventurer. “Can you tell me stories about your adventures?”
Dustin chuckled and patted Tafel’s head. “Of course. This old SSS-ranked adventurer has many stories to tell,” he said while grinning. “Speaking of fruits of knowledge, there was actually one time where my team accepted a request to bring one back. It’s the request that ranked me up from S to SS. We traveled for many days through the wilderness—that’s what adventurers call the beasts’ mountain range—fighting off many creatures that you’ve probably read about in your stories: giant boars, bears, wyverns, phoenixes, cows. In the wilderness, everything will try to kill you if they think you’re weak—that’s why we go as a group. It’s actually pretty easy to detect any danger because the things that can kill you have a unique aura which can be sensed from a mile away if you have a mage.”
“Like what?” Tafel asked with her eyes wide open.
“Like dragons, demonic bats, behemoth bears, basilisks. There were a few snakes that gave off the aura too. It’s an unsettling feeling—like someone is staring at you while you eat your food. You can’t see them, but you know they’re watching and judging you, ugh,” Dustin said and rubbed his arms. “I felt a dragon’s aura once.” His face turned pale. “I seriously considered quitting my career as an adventurer right then and there.
“Anyways, to get a fruit of knowledge, we had to bypass the elves’ village, which was actually pretty easy, but there was a patrol guarding the tree. Rumors in the adventurers’ guild say the patrol is made of seven beautiful elves, each with the strength of an S-ranked adventurer with their leader at SSS-rank. We hid for days until the patrol went away. The tree itself was especially tough. It took ten of my windblades to knock one of the fruits down, and the branch wasn’t even damaged.”
“Is that even possible? You’re not lying to me right?”
“Everything I say is true. There are some really amazing things that nature can accomplish, Tafel. When we use magic, we only borrow a tiny portion of nature’s power,” Dustin said. “People say dragons are the favored children of nature. The power they have is unfathomable to us, which is why there are so few of them. Never anger a dragon, Tafel. Now get back to casting fireballs; you want to be stronger than your brothers, right?”
4
“I want to cry,” Celia said as she buried her face into her hands. Her golden-etched spear lay propped up against the wall behind her. Her blonde hair flowed around her arms like a curtain. “He’s a devil. An absolute devil.”
“Whatever do you mean?” her grandmother asked. She had silver hair and green eyes with crow’s feet around the edges. The two were sitting in a circular room with a wooden table between them. “I doubt he can be as bad as you when you were growing up.” Her grandmother chuckled and took a sip from her wooden cup.
“Did I destroy the Tree of Knowledge? Did I pin people down and force them to eat food? Did I ever make you feel like food!? Did I ever breathe fire!?” Celia sobbed. “He doesn’t listen, and does whatever he wants. He almost killed Mary for trying to put clothes on him, and he caused an earthquake when we tried to feed him vegetables. The children are too afraid to leave their houses because their bones break when he plays with them, and the animals defecate themselves when they see him to make themselves unappealing. We need your help, Grandma.
“You can’t just request for the matriarch to send him over and not help us take care of him. That’s just cruel. Do you know what Grimmoldesser said when he left that devil here? ‘Have fun and try not to die.’ Have fun and try not to die! Yvainne, Claudia, and Julie nearly had their faces ripped off when that boy woke up! He’s only been here for two days, but it’s like the village went through a succession of natural disasters. We’re at the weakest we’ve ever been in years.”
Her grandmother sighed and nodded. So that’s what caused the earthquake, she thought. “Where is he now?” she asked and placed her cup down.
“After incinerating the vegetables, he said he was going to hunt some bears for proper food. I saw him eat once. He eats his meat raw and slurps on it,” Celia said as she shivered. She grabbed her grandmother’s hands. “Can’t you send him back, Grandma? Please? Pretty please? I can’t even punish him or the dragons will be mad at me.”
Her grandmother laughed. “Imagine what all those adventurers you scared away would think if they saw you like this,” she said with a wry smile.
“I’d rather
fight a hundred adventurers with a toothpick than try to tame that devil,” Celia said with tears in her eyes. “At least adventurers bleed. I—”
A high-pitched noise interrupted Celia’s speech, causing her to wince and place her hands over her ears. She jumped up and wiped her tears with the back of her hand as the alarm continued to emit ear-piercing whistles. “That’s the behemoth alarm. How did it get so close without us noticing its aura?” she asked as she snatched her spear off the wall.
Her grandmother stood up and grabbed a wooden staff which was lying next to her leg. “Let’s find out,” she said. The two exited the hollow tree trunk they were staying in and headed towards a cluster of elves in the distance. A few elves traveled alongside them.
“You shouldn’t be here,” Celia said to an elf with white-hair and frowned.
“Four of our guardians are recovering from their injuries,” the white-haired elf said. “What if you aren’t enough?”
“That’s—,” Celia started to say, but the alarm stopped. “Huh?”
“False alarm?” the old elf asked. He looked relieved. Celia turned to face her grandmother and nodded. The group hurried towards the entrance of the village. When they arrived at the entryway, they saw a towering bear in the distance inching towards the gate. The bear’s head was as wide as four people, and if it stood on its hind legs, it would’ve been as tall as a fully grown tree. Its body had brown fur with black stripes circling it, forming strange patterns on its coat.
“Is he carrying that?” an elf whispered.
“Oh my Aeris, he is,” another responded.
“Is that Vur?” Celia asked. She was behind the crowd and couldn’t see the lower half of the bear.
“Yes. It is,” the sentry at the gate said. The surrounding crowd gazed at Celia with looks of undisguised pity. You don’t have to look at me like that, Celia thought but didn’t say anything as she pursed her lips. She sighed and walked out the gate with her grandmother while the crowd parted to let them through.
Celia walked up to the bear and put her hands on her hips. “Vur, you can’t bring that into the village,” she said. “We don’t kill for food here.”
The bear stopped moving. A few seconds later, Vur crawled out from underneath the corpse. Grimmy had taught him how to hunt after the mishap with Snuffles. “Why not?” Vur asked and made a face. “It tastes much better than plants. You should try some.”
“We bond with these animals. They give us strength through imprints, and we keep the humans out of the forest,” Celia’s grandmother replied. She pointed at the bear. “This is one less bear that can help our tribe now that you killed it.”
“I didn’t kill it,” Vur said. “Snuffles did.”
Snuffles oinked and wiggled his bloody rump.
Celia’s grandmother frowned. “That doesn’t matter. The point is, these beasts are to be respected.”
“But Grimmy says these bears are just walking sacks of meat waiting to be plucked,” Vur said. “And dragons don’t lie.”
“You’re not a dragon,” the elder said. “You’re a human. Grimmoldesser’s words don’t apply to you.”
“You’ve done it now, Grandma,” Celia said as she covered her ears. The elves behind her copied her actions. An earth-shaking roar resounded through the forest, causing hundreds of birds to scatter into the air.
“I’m a dragon!” Vur yelled and stomped his foot. “Why does everyone keep calling me a filthy human?” His eyes glowed golden, and the ground buckled as an invisible force descended. A few elves fell to their knees, while the stronger ones grunted and gritted their teeth, standing on shaky legs. Celia propped herself up with her spear while her grandmother barely stayed on her feet, using her staff for support.
“Silence.”
With a single word, the pressure disappeared. A green figure walked out of the woods. It had the shape of a woman, but her body was covered with vines and leaves. Her hair was made of fine strands of wooden branches that flowed to the ground. Vur’s eyes stopped glowing, and he glared at her while opening his mouth. No sounds came out. He dashed at her but fell over when she waved her arm and said, “Bind.”
“Sleep,” she said, and Vur’s eyelids drooped before a snore escaped from his sleeping body.
“Many thanks, High Dryad Juliana,” Celia’s grandmother said as she cupped her hands together. A layer of sweat caused her forehead to shine in the sun.
The dryad shook her head, causing leaves to fall to the ground. “He’s been keeping me up for days with his roaring. What is he?” she asked. She walked up to the sleeping boy, leaving behind a trail of growing pink flowers as she walked.
“He’s a hu—”
“Dragon,” Vur said in his sleep.
“It’s best if you come inside so we can explain the situation,” Celia said and sighed.
“What should we do about the behemoth?” the sentry asked.
Snuffles looked at Vur who was being carried into the village by the dryad and then looked at the bear. His eyes glowed, and a dome of ice encased the bear. He had seen Sera freeze the leftover bears multiple times and could use her magic since he had her lineage. Snuffles snorted then followed after Vur, ignoring the shocked looks of the elves.
***
“Do you think the elves are treating him well?” Sera asked Vernon and rolled over onto her belly. She stretched her wings out over the boulder she and Vernon were lying on top of. “He’s so fragile. What if he gets hurt?”
“You worry too much. Vur’s strong, and the elves wouldn’t dare mistreat him,” Vernon said with a yawn. He stroked Sera’s wing and smiled.
“If anything, he’d be mistreating the elves,” Grimmy said with a laugh. “I taught him a little something on the way there.” He snorted. “Let’s see them try to educate my nephew.”
Leila blinked at him. “What did you teach him?”
“Oh, nothing. Just the principles of a dragon,” Grimmy said with a grin. “Pride, arrogance, greed, gluttony, stubbornness, wrath, envy. You know, the usual.”
Leila smacked his snout. “That’s terrible,” she said and giggled, “but that’s why I love you.”
Grimmy chuckled and kissed her neck.
Prika grumbled from her rocky ledge overlooking the four dragons sunbathing in the valley. She puffed her cheeks out. “I’m not jealous of them or anything. Totally not.” Her tail slammed against the side of the cliff, causing a landslide on the other side of the mountain. She sighed. “I need to find a mate.”
***
Vur’s eyes opened. He was lying on the ground with a boulder on top of his stomach. He pushed on it with his hands, but contrary to his expectations, it didn’t budge. Black bands of runes were encircling his wrists, forearms, and biceps. Similar bands of runes were wrapped around his neck, ankles, and torso.
“Oh, you’re awake,” a voice said. Vur turned his head to the side and narrowed his eyes. Juliana was sitting on a chair with a book in her hands. Her brown legs branched off into four strands like the roots of a flower.
“You’re the bully!” Vur said and squirmed underneath the boulder. It didn’t budge. He heard a pig snort. Snuffles was in a similar situation.
“I’m your new teacher,” Juliana said. “The elves really don’t like you, you know? I’m surprised they haven’t killed you yet, especially since you’re a human.” Vur growled and tried to roar. A mewl came out of his mouth instead. “I placed a silencing curse on you. In the end, you’re just a blue mage.” She shut her book and stood up. She strolled over to Vur’s side—black flowers sprouted out of the ground around her as she walked. She knelt by his side and stroked the golden rune on his forehead with her finger. Vur tried to bite her. “I really wonder why the matriarch imprinted you. You might’ve adopted her lineage, but that doesn’t matter if your magic resistance is the same as a human’s.” She pinched his cheek and smiled while fending off his hand.
“Are you going to put some clothes on?” Juliana asked. “My student can’
t wander around naked, you know? That would reflect quite poorly on me.”
“No,” Vur said and glared at Juliana. She beamed at him.
“I’ll remove the boulder if you put some clothes on,” Juliana said and straightened the gnarls in Vur’s hair.
“No,” Vur said and wrinkled his nose. “Dragons don’t wear clothes.”
“Mm.” Juliana hummed. She opened her mouth and asked, “Are you hungry? If you don’t put some clothes on, I won’t feed you.”
“I won’t,” Vur said. If he could cross his arms over his chest, he would. “I’m a dragon.”
Juliana chuckled as her green face darkened and turned purple. “You believe I won’t kill you? The elves are completely fed up with you. If you don’t listen to me…” Juliana’s finger caressed the side of Vur’s cheek.
“Then kill me. My parents will avenge me; it’s a dragon’s duty,” Vur said and snapped his teeth at Juliana’s finger. This time he managed to bite her.
“Who is teaching you this nonsense?” Juliana asked as she retrieved her hand. Her finger was gone, torn off at her knuckle. A green sap dripped onto Vur’s face—it smelled like honey. Moments later, a flower bud appeared at the severed appendage, blooming into another finger.
“It’s not nonsense. Dragons don’t lie,” Vur said and spat out Juliana’s finger. It tasted like spinach.
Juliana stood up and made her way to the door. “Well, you’re going to be stuck like that until you decide to put on clothes. Let’s see how much of a dragon you really are,” she said as she shut the door behind her.
Vur snorted and closed his eyes.
“How is he?” Celia asked. She had been sitting outside waiting for results.
“He’s stubborn,” Juliana said and nodded. “I wonder if positive reinforcement would’ve worked better.” She shrugged. “I’ll be back in a week. Make sure not to feed him anything unless he agrees to wear clothes.”
“Is that really okay?” Celia asked and furrowed her brow. “He won’t starve or dehydrate?”